Westchester Entertainment

One figure separates this listing from almost every other DJ we looked at in Westchester. The company’s own site posts a $250 add on charge for photo booth instant prints. That is a first party number, published by the business rather than pulled from a marketplace listing. In this category that is unusual. It is also the only price on the site. The DJ packages themselves are quote only. So are the MC, lighting and production lines. The company says it has been working more than 25 years and covers Westchester County, the Hudson Valley and Fairfield County in Connecticut. Weddings share the calendar with Sweet 16s and proms, which are the two event types most likely to compete with a Saturday in spring.

A single published figure is still worth something

The $250 instant print add on tells you the company is willing to put a number in public. Use it. Ask why that line is published and the rest is not.

It also gives you a unit to test. If the booth itself is quoted at a figure you cannot benchmark, at least you know what one named extra costs on top of it.

Everything except the prints is a conversation

Nothing else on the page carries a figure. DJ hours and MC service are unpriced. So are uplighting, dance floor lighting and production. There is no tier list and no minimum.

The quote should name the hours and the equipment it covers. It should also give the number of staff and the overtime rate. Get the booth and the print add on shown separately, so the $250 sits where you can see it.

Proms and Sweet 16s compete for the dates you want

Spring proms and Sweet 16 season overlap with wedding season. A company serving all three is managing one calendar.

Check how many events the company runs on a single night and which DJ is assigned to yours. Get that name into the contract, with a substitution policy attached in case the person is unavailable.

The MC is the person who actually runs your reception

DJ and MC are listed here as separate services, and both are quote only. In practice one person often does both jobs. The gap in skill between a competent DJ and a good MC is the gap between a room that moves and a room that waits.

Whether the MC is the same person as the DJ is the first thing to settle, along with what it costs if you want two. Ask to hear how introductions and announcements are handled, ideally from a recording rather than a description. A good one will also have a plan for a timeline that slips when dinner runs late.

Check what time the crew arrives to set up and how long the setup takes. Then check whether those hours count against your contracted performance time. That last one catches people out.